With Calgary’s frigid winter weather, energy efficiency measures are a priority. It’s essential for homeowners to seal up their homes, increase insulation and use an energy-efficient heating system. That same cold weather, however, can also mean that your plumbing system is more susceptible to freezing pipes. You can avoid the inconvenience and costly damage caused by frozen pipes by following these precautionary measures:
Effective insulation
Your home’s insulation is a primary factor in preventing frozen pipes. Whether your pipes are made of copper or plastic, both materials are vulnerable to freezing, which can cause the pipes to burst. In fact, just a small crack can lead to a significant amount of water spewing from your pipes, flooding your home, leading to mould issues, and causing significant damage throughout your home. So, it’s important to assess the insulation in your home wherever plumbing pipes are located. Doing so will keep more heated air inside, and increase the overall temperature of your home –especially in unconditioned spaces.
Sealing air leaks
Along with insulation, sealing air leaks also helps to keep your home at a consistent temperature. Develop a comprehensive plan to evaluate the tightness of your home, and pay particular attention to air leaks that can occur in unconditioned spaces, such as a basement, where plumbing pipes are located and most vulnerable.
Plumbing pipes
One of the best ways to prevent pipes from freezing is to add insulation to the pipes. You can use specially designed insulation for this purpose, wrapping all pipes with insulation to keep them protected from cooler temperatures. It is particularly important to insulate pipes located in colder spaces, like an attic or basement, and pipes that run through exterior walls. You can also apply heat tape around the pipes.
While you can’t control the outdoor temperature, you can avoid the damage and undue cost caused by freezing pipes by adding insulation to your home, sealing air leaks and applying insulation directly to pipes. If you’d like help assessing your home’s vulnerability to freezing pipes, or if you’d like to increase your home’s energy efficiency, contact Arpi’s Industries – serving Calgary-area homeowners for over 48 years.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about frozen pipes and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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